They Say
by Equify
Summary: They say that nobody is born evil, that it is what happens to us that shapes our lives forever. Follow Harry, Ron, Hermione, Draco, and Ginny as they travel back in time in order to prevent Tom Riddle from becoming Lord Voldemort.


They Say

They say that nobody is born evil, that it is what happens to us that shapes our lives forever. So what happens when nobody cares to love you? What happens when there is nobody

there? Do you try to help others so nobody will hurt like you did? Or, do make them all feel as though there is no one to save them in the end?

* * *

Hermione Granger was running madly to the great hall of Hogwarts, rushing to aid her best friends battle Lord Voldemort. She had to leap over the bodies of her peers and professors

just to get through the entrance hall. She dreaded what she would find when she would get to the site of the fighting. Hermione was having difficulty staying upright. Her head was

spinning as she slipped through the slick blood that drenched the floors of her one true home. After several attempts at dodging corpses, she managed to reach the enchanted great hall.

Spells were flying everywhere and ricocheting off the walls in every direction. Hermione dashed to the center of the combat. She found Harry and Ron dueling death eaters for their lives,

and loosing. Harry was bleeding profusely from a gash on his chest. Ron looked as though he was about to pass out from over exertion and exhaustion. Draco and Ginny were fighting

other masked death eaters on the gryffindor table. Bellatrix had spotted Hermione and was shooting curse after hex after jinx at her at full power. She agilely dodged them and sent

spells at her opponent all at the same time. Hermione's body was positively humming from the magic that was coursing through her veins. Mulciber had decided to join in on the fun and

attacked Neville from the side. She easily countered him and sent out a powerful stunner without even looking to see if she had hit her target. Rosier and McNair were coming at her from

above, attacking her on broomstick. Meanwhile, Albus Dumbledore was attempting to gather all the materials he would need for the light side's last ditch effort to save the wizarding

world as they knew it. He sent out a signal to the charmed coins he gave out to his most important students. Hermione, Draco, Ron, Harry, and Ginny all scrambled past the fight and

darted past the ensuing battle to reach the headmaster's office.

Somehow, miraculously, they all managed to get the headmaster's quarters without being blasted to smithereens. They ran up the staircase after shouting licorice wands at the gargoyle guarding Albus Dumbledore's study. The teenagers stopped short at what they saw. All of the furniture and all the headmaster's artifacts were missing from the room. Even the paintings of the previous headmasters and headmistresses were absent from the area. The only thing left was a circle of complex runes on the ground

"I've figured out a way to win this battle. As of now, we are going to loose this war." Albus whispered ominously to the teenagers.

"I don't understand, Professor. Why now?" Hermione said with shock in her voice.

"As you can see, we are fighting for a lost cause. I have been thinking long and hard about what I could do to solve this mess. I was left with only one conclusion. After much deliberation, I have decided to send some of you back in time, around fifty years to Tom Riddle's time at Hogwarts should you wish to. I plan on sending those who agree back to 1944, Tom Riddle's seventh year at Hogwarts and his stint as head boy. My intentions are to prevent Riddle from ever becoming the murdered he was destined to become. I would like to stop his plot at the source. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, would be to stop him from creating the horcruxes and forming the death eaters. By his seventh he was already planning the dark mark. I know this is a lot to ask of you. I have been torn into pieces trying to figure out if I should even suggest this route for it is a dangerous one. Tom had already killed twice by his seventh year, so he is dangerous. Keep in mind that if you do decide to go back in time, you would never be able to come back to the future. You would be forever stuck in the past. This is an extremely difficult decision I ask of you. I wish there was more time for you to think it over. It has taken me months to get the runes right. Think this through; you would never be able to see family and friends you have now. But at the same time, you would possibly be saving them from death. This is you choice, and your choice alone. It has dire consequences either way you think about it. Do you accept?"

The group of adolescents all looked as though they had been slapped. But anyone could see the wheels turning in their heads or the look of determination on their faces.

"I'll do it." Draco said abruptly

Hermione looked at Dumbledore's twinkling blue eyes and agreed as well. It was just a matter of seconds before the rest of them agreed to the mission.

"I can't be more serious when I saw this is a dangerous path, although I am delighted that you have agreed to go. I'm assuming you all know Tom Riddle's history?"

They all nodded in affirmation.

"Good, I will have to change your names and appearances. We don't want confuse time even more than necessary."

With that Dumbledore turned on each one of them and changed their hair and eye color. Harry's messy black hair and green eyes turned into blond hair and hazel eyes that had flecks of the original bright green. Harry's fair skin went even more pail, and he gained freckles dusting his nose. His scar disappeared.

Draco's blonde hair stayed the same color and his grey eyes turned a sky blue color. His skin turned several shades darker and had an exotic glow to it.

Ginny's Red hair changed to a rich black and her brown eyes stayed the same. Her skin stayed the same shade and she shrunk a few inches to around five feet.

Ron's bright red hair changed to a light, honey brown. His eyes stayed the same shade as his sisters'.

Hermione's look changed drastically. Her hair was changed into a white blonde, like Draco's. Her eyes were changed to a cerulean blue that sparkled in the sunlight. Her skin became tanned. Perhaps the largest difference to her look was that she gained about five inches in height, much taller than her previous 5'3" build. She became much more slender and her babyfat melted away.

"Draco and Hermione will become the Adelphi twins. Harry, you should change your last name to McKee. Ron and Ginny, your last name will become Waverly. You will probably notice that Hogwarts in 1944 will not be as welcoming to muggle borns and half bloods. I gave all of you old pureblooded names in order to make your stay more welcomed. I have arranged a note for you to give my past self and transcripts for you to give to Dippet."

"Thank you, Professor." Harry mumbled

"Remember not to speak to any of the students until you have been admitted and resorted. I would like for you all to be in different houses in order to gain different perspectives on Riddle, although that is ultimately up to the sorting hat."

What years will we be in? Ginny asked nervously.

"That's a good question Miss Waverly." Albus winked for good measure. "You will be the only one in sixth year, as you have not yet completed the magic for seventh. All the rest of you will be in seventh year."

A crash could be heard from outside the office. Albus gave them all a poignant look.

"I must send you now, the time is upon us. Within this trunk," Albus gestured at a small looked trunk in the middle of the circle of runes, "is your books, money, clothes, and anything else you may need. I am going to activate the circle and I need you all to stay calm while I do the magic. Just a few words before you part- Not all battles can be won through violence. Sometimes you must love and lose in order to triumph and prosper"

Dumbledore motioned to the perfect circle on the floor and the teens stepped inside. He enunciated the words to the spell he created and the symbols on the floor glowed in unison.

"Envoyer ces enfants à la source de la mort. Le lion se ressentir de la douleur pour le serpent et le serpent pour le lion. Ils disent qu'il ne peut se faire, mais la victoire sera magique."

Draco, Hermione, Ron, Ginny, and Harry all shimmered. Their hair and robes blew in a nonexistent wind. They could feel the pure, old magique coursing through their very soles. And then, in an instant they vanished.

A.N- Well, what do you think? I'm doing this to improve my writing so any critique will be greatly appreciated. If you notice and tense hopping, please let me know.

Dumbledore's spell is in French and it translates as follows.

Send these children to the source of death. The lion will feel pain for the serpent and the serpent for the lion. They say it cannot be done, but magic will triumph.

This story is AU, and I have taken some inspiration from Lady Moonglow's Have You Ever. Oh, and the disclaimer. I own nothing and I do not take rights from JK Rowling. She created the Hogwarts Universe, I just play with it.


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